SpaceX successfully recovers Falcon 9 rocket first stage

The mission, capped by delivery of all 11 satellites to orbit for launch customer ORBCOMM, unfolded in just over 30 minutes.

In a pre-launch blog post, the company CEO detailed the Falcon 9’s latest changes, including an increased boost thrust, deep cryo oxidizer, and large upper-stage engine bell; SpaceX also made reliability enhancements like a redundant stage separation system and greater structural safety margins.

Weather and other delays kept its comeback flight grounded this weekend, but SpaceX launched from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Air Force Station without a hitch on Monday evening.

The Falcon 9 rocket took off from Cape Canaveral around 5:30 p.m. California time with a payload of 11 satellites being deployed into “low-Earth orbit” for the ORBCOMM communications company. “Congratulations @SpaceX on your successful vertical landing of the first stage back on Earth!” Previous landing attempts ended in fiery blasts, but those aimed for an ocean platform.

SpaceX is one of several companies contracted by the USA space agency NASA to ferry supplies, and, eventually, astronauts to the International Space Station and low-Earth orbit.

During an exciting 20-minute launch, landing, and satellite deployment, the gathered crowd at mission control cheered at every successful stage of the mission.

“It really felt like it was right on top of us”, Elon Musk, the chief executive of SpaceX, said during a telephone news conference after the landing, according to the New York Times.

The reusable main-stage booster then turned around, flew back to Cape Canaveral and landed safely near its launchpad in a dramatic spaceflight first. Musk called the moment revolutionary, saying that it landed “dead center on the landing pad”.

After Bezos landed his rocket in November, Musk couldn’t let Blue Origin revel in its own glory. The rocket landing was just icing on the cake.

“We’ve actually beeing doing work for SpaceX for a number of years”, Ben Johnson, Leading Edge’s lead administrator and quality manager, said Tuesday.